Emma Lloyd

My work is driven by daily documentation and observation of the world around me, within this exists a visual diary that I create to record my everyday thoughts, feelings and memories. Distortion features heavily in my practice, to represent the more ominous daily emotions I experience. I work with autobiographical themes, key elements of my practice are memory and diary style documentation.
I locate my work within a photographic practice. Destructive ‘pre’ and ‘post’ distortive techniques. such as long or double exposure; solarisation and chemical manipulation (chromo sabbatier) allow me to symbolise my feelings of anxiety by distorting the original content of the image. The autobiographical nature of my work further pushes me to explore struggles with mental health which I represent through distorted imagery.
I combine analogue processes of photography and daily drawings as a method of documentation. My drawings are bold, vibrant and humorous, I use bright colours and simplistic line to communicate the day's events. I use daily drawings as a secondary analogue process, this became an important tool for keeping me motivated, as it forced me to be creative every day.
I use ‘snapshot’ everyday photography to document what is happening around me. I prioritise the image’s content over perfect composition or focus. This quick method lends itself to the everyday subject matter as the images are honest and not orchestrated. I use my camera as a diary by adopting an unprecious technique and by not limiting my subject matter.
I use long exposure and movement to create blurry, unfocused compositions. This method of distortion lends itself to the feelings of anxiety I am trying to represent, through its ghostly and ambiguous aesthetic.
I evolve my photographic outcomes further by developing my images into ‘artefacts’, combining my work with ceramic materials. I expose my photographs onto handmade ceramic tiles, using liquid light (a liquid photographic emulsion). This method of display allows me to showcase my photographs as historical objects, as the liquid light and ceramic glaze react with the chemical developer to create nostalgic, sepia tones to the imagery.
I am interested in displaying my work in a way which reflects the safety I feel when in my domestic space. Hence, choosing to display my work on traditional household elements such as ceramic tiles on a fireplace and family photo frames, recreating my family living room as an exhibition space. To me, this reflects the comfort I seek when feeling anxious and works to juxtapose and defeat the feelings of anxiety that a lot of my photographs and drawings represent.
My Fine Art Degree has equipped me with a wealth of skills to tackle the creative industries. Experience on various committees has honed my organisational and team work skills. I feel confident at working to deadlines and able to collaborate successfully with peers. I have a strong sense for attention to detail as a result of my degree pushing my curatorial skills. My dissertation challenged me. It taught me about the value of reliable research and how to communicate my findings effectively, as a result my writing skills have flourished and my confidence has grown. I am a creative thinker who can problem solve effectively through undertaking a Fine Art Degree.
Post university I would like to pursue a career in the creative industries, I am particularly interested in photography and the film industry. I plan to develop my photographic practice further, having set up a dark room at home with the intention of selling work. I hope the creative practical skill set my degree has provided me with will enable me to be experimental and innovative, and push photography to new levels. This, alongside the writing and research skills that I have developed over my dissertation will lead me to find a career path that I am truly passionate about. Please see my Instagram for more of my work.